TIME : March 1, 2018 10:00 A.M.
PLACE : M.W.G.D. Headquarters
"I've tried to get him to ask me for almost a year," Detrina told Hank and Lisa in frustration. "but he doesn't seem to be getting the message."
"Ask him yourself," insisted Lisa. "If you wait for him to ask you, you'll be waiting for the rest of your life. In spite of his take charge attitude, he's very shy when it comes to personal things."
"Lisa's right," agreed Hank. "You obviously want it more that he does so you be the one to ask."
The conversation abruptly ceased when Peter and Linda walked into the room.
"What's new?" asked Peter innocently.
"This is your chance," encouraged Hank.
"Nothing," sighed Detrina. "I just wish I had as much courage as you do."
"You've saved my life on numerous occasions," Peter reminded her. "There is no way I'd call you a coward."
"This is different," stated Detrina. "I wish I could find the words to ask you."
"Will Peter and Detrina please report to my office," Shawn announced over the intercom.
"How strange," commented Peter. "He doesn't usually ask for us without asking for Hank, Linda, and Lisa as well."
"You had better not keep him waiting," advised Linda. be fine without you."
TIME : 10:05 A.M.
PLACE : Shawn's office
When Peter and Detrina entered Shawn's office they were surprised to see a picture in the middle of the room. The picture was a hologram of the Milky Way Galaxy slowly spiraling at the rate of about once every three minutes.
"Do you know what this hologram represents?" he asked them.
"It's the symbol of the Galactic Olympics," Detrina recalled.
"Correct," responded Shawn. "Once every 768 days, or two Alpha Memory years, over 200 planets get together and hold events similar to our olympics. They have a scoring system giving so many points to the winner of each event, so many points for second, and so on. Whichever planet has the most points at the end of the marathon, which is always the last event, is declared the winning team."
The hologram of the galaxy disappeared and was replaced with a hologram of a man in his early thirties. Peter had been with the people in the Altair system long enough to know that that was where the man in question originated.
"His name is Gammeid," continued Shawn. "He is a defector from Altair 7 competing for Terni in the Galactic Olympics. The information he has on the Ruler is very valuable to us. That is why I entered you in the Galactic Olympics."
"You did what?" cried Peter, his voice going up a full octave.
"You will be representing Earth in the Galactic Olympics," replied Shawn. "Detrina will be your trainer.
Since Earth has only one representative, the Terni team will allow you to stay with them giving you a chance to talk to Gammeid before the olympics is over."
"Which event is Gammeid going to do and what event am I getting myself into?" wondered Peter.
"Gammeid will be in the marathon," Sbawn explained. "It is about 75 kilometers in length. You will be in the medium run. It is about 8 kilometers long. I know you ran a few 10K races back on Earth so this should be no problem for you."
"I never finished anywhere near the front!" protested Peter. "How do you expect me to compete in the Galactic Olympics."
"I don't," snapped Shawn sounding colder than he meant to. "I expect you to keep an eye on Gammeid. Protect him at all costs. Putting you in the olympics was the only way we could get close to him. The Galactic Olympics will start on Star Colony #8 tomorrow. Don't let me down. I'm depending on you."
"I won't," Peter assured him. "You can count on me."
"Me too," added Detrina.
"I'm glad to hear it," smiled Shawn. "Say good bye to the others and gather whatever you may need."
Gammeid will be waiting for you when you reach Star Colony #8."
TIME : 2:30 P.M. (14:30)
PLACE : Star Colony #8
"Welcome," said a friendly voice as soon as they arrived.
"You must be Gammeid," guessed Peter before he saw who had spoken.
"And you must be Peter and Detrina," Gammeid remarked coming into view. "Shawn has told me so much about you."
"Not too much I hope," smirked Peter.
"Are you carrying any weapons on you?" inquired Gammeid.
"It's standard M.W.G.D. policy," Peter replied.
"You'll need to turn in your weapons," Gammeid explained. "Weapons aren't allowed beyond this point. They are very strict about protecting the athletes, no exceptions."
"At least the Ruler's athletes won't have weapons either," stated Peter.
"The local inhabitants didn't want Altair 7 competing in their olympics, but olympic rules require them to allow anyone who wants to compete to compete, even Altair 7 and, fortunately for me, Earth," said Gammeid.
"Star colony #8 is so new it doesn't even have a name yet. The inhabitants were very surprised when they won the right to host the next olympics. It is one of a dozen colonies placed on small planets orbiting a small star. Most people consider them useless, others consider them the wave of the future. The success or failure of this olympics may decide its fate."
"You sound like you want them to succeed," Detrina remarked.
"Definitely!" exclaimed Gammeid. "They remind me of Terni. We're one of the smallest planets entered in the olympics, yet we're one of the favorites."
"I hope you win!" declared Peter. "Even if I were the best athlete in the galaxy, I doubt Earth could win the olympics from one event."
"I hope you do respectably," stated Gammeid. "No matter how you do, you'll make history by being the first contestant from Earth."
"That's what I'm afraid of," gulped Peter.
Peter and Detrina turned in their weapons as promised and entered the city. As soon as they did, Peter noticed a huge, transparent dome extending as far as the eye could see.
"What is the dome for?" wondered Peter.
"The gravity on this planet isn't strong enough to support the kind of atmosphere we're used to. The dome serves two purposes. It keeps the atmosphere in and it keep harmful rays from the sun out. Without it we'd die in seconds."
Unknown to them, two athletes from Altair 7 were following them. One of them sent a message to the Ruler.
"We're too late," he reported. "Peter has entered the olympics himself. He and Detrina are talking to Gammeid even as we speak."
"Patience," scolded the Ruler. "The olympics lasts thirteen days. We have plenty of time. Do you have the poison ready?"
"Yes," he managed to stammer.
"Give some to Peter and Detrina as well," ordered the Ruler. them too much already."
TIME : 6:30 P.M. (18:30)
PLACE : The Terni Training Facility
Gammeid gave Peter and Detrina a tour of the city. Discussing top secret information was the furthest thing from his mind. Peter and Detrina were more than willing to let Gammeid take his time with such information. The information was useless to them as individuals anyway.
At last Gammeid showed them where they were going to stay during the olympics. Gammeid handed Peter something that looked like a strawberry shake. He took a small sip. It even tasted like a strawberry shake. Suddenly he felt a tingling sensation throughout his entire body.
"What is this stuff?" he asked.
"It's special concoction made only on Terni," explained Gammeid. "It's supposed to give you more energy."
"It did that," admitted Peter. "I'm just not sure what else it did."
The three of them sat down at a nearby table. Peter and Gammeid slowly drank their shakes while Detrina enjoyed a normal meal. She missed the food from her home planet and was glad to have the chance to eat some again. The food at M.W.G.D. Headquarters was good but nothing compared to food from Terni.
Her thoughts were interrupted when one of the two people in charge of the Terni olympic team walked up to Gammeid. From the look on his face she could tell the news was not good.
"Two athletes from the Altair 7 team wish to talk to you," he said. "What should I tell them?"
Gammeid looked to Peter and Detrina for some advice.
"It's up to you," Peter told him.
"Send them in," Gammeid sighed.
The two Altair 7 athletes who had been following them earlier came over to their table and sat down. Peter noticed that although they both looked athletic they didn't appear to be of olympic caliber. Looking them over carefully he determined beyond a reasonable doubt that these were the Ruler's assassins. They would strike now because of all the witnesses, but he would have to keep his eye on them in the future.
"I am Eglo and this is Bymen," the one who had spoken to the Ruler. "We would like you to reconsider your decision to leave Altair 7. Our olympic team needs your help. If you return to Altair 7 I promise you huge rewards."
"You know Gammeid won't return to Altair 7 so why don't you tell us why you really came," Detrina blurted out. "It wasn't to convince Gammeid to return to Altair 7 to compete in the olympics. Why are you here?"
"As long as you bring up the subject, why are you here?" inquired Eglo. "Isn't it unusual for two members of M.W.G.D. to enter the olympics as athlete and trainer."
"I am the only representative from my home planet, Earth," Peter cut in. "The Galactic Olympics, like the olympics back on Earth, was meant to be a place where people of various cultures could get together in peace and harmony. Why don't we put our differences aside until the olympics is over. We may be at war elsewhere in the galaxy but the war is not here."
"I'm glad of you has some sense," Eglo remarked coldly. "All we want to do is compete in the olympics. The Ruler isn't as evil as you make him out to be. He wants to bring order to the galaxy so we can exist in peace and harmony."
Detrina was starting to turn red. She started to say something, but then thought better of it.
"I don't want trouble either," Gammeid agreed angrily. "but I am returning to Altair 7. How many times do I have to tell you?"
"If that is your decision then we will have to respect it," frowned Eglo. "Good luck in the olympics. If you change your mind you know where to find us."
"You too," replied Peter as if they were close friends instead of bitter enemies.
"Who knows?" declared Bymen. "We might surprise you before the olympics is over."
Eglo quickly silenced him and whispered something to him. Bymen nodded.
"It's time for us to go," stated Eglo. "Good bye until we meet again.
The three of them watched them leave. Peter waved good bye until they were out of sight. The other two gave a sigh of relief. As far as they were concerned the less they saw of the Altair 7 team, the better.
"Why were you so friendly with them?" demanded Detrina. "They want to kill Gammeid and probably us as well."
"It won't hurt us to be polite," argued Peter. "I know what they're up to, but arguing with them isn't going to help us any. As long as we keep calm they might not know we suspect them. The Ruler has many people working for him who are just as evil as he is, maybe even more so, but he also has people who are more or less like you once were, people who are reasonably nice but let the Ruler deceive them. The only way we can convince the people from Altair 7 to fight the Ruler is to convince them that we care about them more than he does."
"Their loyalty to the Ruler is total," Detrina protested. "There is no way we can pursuade them to turn against. The Ruler's assassins are the most loyal people he has."
"It still won't hurt to be polite to them," insisted Peter. "I know you're mad at the Ruler for tricking you, but now is not the time for revenge. Our job is to protect Gammeid. That is all."
"I'm not as even tempered as you are, but I'll try to get along with them," sighed Detrina. "I agree with your reasoning, but it don't think I can do it."
"Just try," said Peter sympathetically. "That's all I ask of you."
"Why do you think they came here?" wondered Gammeid.
"They probably wanted to look us over," answered Peter. "They wanted to see what they were up against and I don't mean in the olympics."
"What do you think they decided about us?" asked Gammeid.
"I think they've decided they can take us," Peter replied grimly. "We don't look very dangerous and we can't be with you twenty-four hours a day. If they underestimated us even a little bit I plan to take full advantage of it. Most people underestimate us, even the Ruler, until we give them more than they bargained for."
"I'm glad you're on my side," smiled Gammeid. "Next to X, you and your companions from Earth have been the greatest threat to the Ruler."
"That is why we have to stay constantly on guard," explained Peter. "The Ruler would love a chance to eliminate us."
"After the olympics is over, I have something important I'd like to ask you," stamered Detrina.
"Why can't you ask me now?" inquired Peter.
"Now is not the right time," Detrina informed him. "I don't want to distract you from your duties. When the time is right, I will tell you."
"It will distract me more knowing you're keeping a secret from me," retorted Peter. "Why did you tell me anything at all? You could have just waited till after the olympics is over."
"I wanted to make sure we could be alone immediately after the olympics," stuttered Detrina. "What I have to say can only be said when we are alone. I assure you it's important."
"You look pale!" exclaimed Peter. "Are you feeling sick?"
"I'm just a little nervous," Detrina assured him. "I'll be fine."
Peter was curious about what Detrina had to tell him. It was obviously making her feel uncomfortable. Whatever it was it could wait until after the olympics. Peter decided not to mention it again. If Detrina thought it was important, she would be the one to bring it up.
TIME : March 2, 2018 8:00 A.M.
PLACE : The Main Olympic Stadium
Whatever was in the shake Peter drank, it didn't affect his sleeping habits. Peter slept soundly, so soundly it took a full minute for the alarm to arouse him. Things wouldn't get any easier for him. His event would take place in six days which meant six more days of getting up early.
Today, however, he got a short break from his training. It was time for the opening ceremonies. Peter and Detrina stood side by side. Peter held the flag of the United Nations, which he felt was the closest thing Earth had to a flag of the entire planet, and Detrina held the flag of the United States. They were dwarfed by the huge numbers of people representing the other planets, but they felt important anyway. They were part of the olympics.
Peter looked ahead at the group from Altair 7. There were hundreds of them. He couldn't see Eglo or Bymen, but he knew they were there. Most of the Altair 7 representatives were honest athletes having no idea they were spies among them. He actually felt sorry for them. The Ruler placed cruel restrictions on them. They weren't allowed to any outsiders without permission. They wouldn't admit it, but Gammeid had told him everything they had to go through.
He was glad Earth was between Altair 7 and Terni. They wouldn't strike in front this many people, but they could never be too careful. He looked back at the group from Terni. Some of them were waving to the crowd. Gammeid was up in front carrying Terni's flag, yellow with a red diamond in the center. He was too busy looking at the people from the other planets to notice Peter.
Peter waved to the crowd with his free hand. With thousands of people in the stands and millions, maybe even billions, of people watching him on T.V., someone had to be looking at him.
The names of the planets were called one be one. When a planet was called, the olympic team from that planet moved to the center of the stadium and the flag bearers placed their flags in the designated area. Most planets had just one flag, but some of them had as many as five. When the flag or flags were hoisted into the sky the crowd would cheer. Some of the olanets were liked better than others. Altair 3 had a huge following and Altair 7 received more boos than cheers.
At last Earth was called. Peter and Detrina approached the center of the stadium carrying their flags as high as they could. They received about an average amount of applause. Peter guessed that they were cheering louder than usual because this was Earth's first time in the Galactic Olympics. Lie doubted they would cheer that loudly for two people whose planet wasn't represented in the audience if they were just another planet.
When Terni came to the center of the stadium, they received the loudest applause yet. They were a small planet, but they had a tremendous following. The people from other small planets liked to see Terni defeat the most powerful planets like Triax and Altair 3.
The loudest cheers of all were reserved for Triax. With trillions of people calling Triax their home, it was hard to go anywhere without meeting someone from Triax. They had won the Galactic Olympics more often than any other planet and the ruder of their fans wouldn't let the other planets forget it. The worst Triax had ever finished was third place. They were the team to beat.
The last flag was the flag of the Galactic Olympics, a simple picture of the Milky Way Galaxy against a black background. The flag was placed in the very center with the other flags slowly spinning around it. The crowd cheered louder than ever for all the teams represented in the Galactic Olympics before they left to prepare for their various events.
TIME : 11:00 A.M.
PLACE : A small track
As Peter ran around the track, the scores from other events flashed overhead. After three events, Triax had a large lead over second place Darius and third place Altair 3. Triax had won all three events easily and looked like they were unstoppable. Only the top six planets in each event got points. Terni had yet to score, but their best events were yet to come.
Peter was on his twelfth lab. With each lap being exactly half a kilometer, he needed to run sixteen laps to complete the medium run. He had gotten off to a good start, running faster than he had ever run in his life, but he was beginning to tire. His pace was much slower than it had been with no signs of recovery.
"Come on Peter! You can do it!" encouraged Detrina. "Only four laps to go."
Peter grabbed a cup of water as he completed his twelfth lap. The water felt good going down his parched throat. Peter wiped the sweat off his forehead with his sleeve and quickened his pace. His first practice run was almost complete.
Eglo and Bymen quietly slipped inside. They cautiously looked around them to see if anybody had noticed them. No one had. The only people in the area were Peter and Detrina. Detrina was too busy watching Peter and Peter was too busy trying to improve his time. It was the perfect opportunity for them to strike.
"Have you got the poison?" whispered Eglo.
Bymen showed him the small bottle containing the deadly liquid.
"Good," said Eglo. "We'll wait until Detrina moves away from the water station."
As Peter completed his fourteenth lap, Detrina handed him another cup of water. Peter finished it off in just a few seconds and dropped the cup behind him. Detrina picked up the cup and put it in the trash. Then, she a large plastic cup full of water for Peter to drink when he had finished his run. She watched Peter for a few minutes, then walked over to the scoreboard to see how her home planet, Terni was doing.
Knowing he wouldn't get another chance, Bymen crept quietly toward the water. He opened the bottle, poured the liquid inside and watched it disappear. In a few seconds it was impossible to tell the difference between the new mixture and an ordinary glass of water. Satisfied with his work, he returned to Eglo and reported that the job was done.
They watched Peter as he sprinted the final lap with everything he had left.
"It shouldn't be long now," sneered Eglo. "All you have to do is do the same thing to Gammeid and we can leave this stupid olympics."
"I'm with you," agreed Bymen. "I don't like it here. Too many people ask too many questions. I don't know what they'll do when they find out we're not in any events."
"Don't worry about it," snapped Eglo. "Let's go."
As they started to leave, Detrina saw them out of the corner of her eye. She ran after them to see who they were and what they were doing. When she saw it was Eglo and Bymen and they were leaving, she knew something was wrong. She returned to the track hoping to figure out what they had done before it was too late.
Meanwhile, Peter had finished the race. He lifted his arms as high as he could and began walking around as he had learned to do from the 10k races he had run back on Earth.
"What was my time, Detrina?" he asked before realizing that Detrina was missing. "Detrina! Where are you?"
He was worried the Eglo and Bymen had gotten to her and decided he would call security. He picked up the cup of water and started walking over to the emergency intercom. He slowly raised the cup to his mouth.
Detrina saw Peter with the cup and realized what Eglo and Bymen had done. She ran over to him as quickly as she could but she feared it would be too late.
Copyright MCMXCV, MCMXCIX
